


Deceit

by lvaeonii



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No Quirks (My Hero Academia), Angst, Bakugou Katsuki Swears A Lot, Bakugou Katsuki is Bad at Feelings, Character Death, Despair, F/M, Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), M/M, Midoriya Izuku Needs A Hug, Monokuma (Dangan Ronpa) Being An Asshole, Murder Mystery, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Panic Attacks, Smart Midoriya Izuku, Suicide Attempt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-28
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:35:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,154
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22446508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lvaeonii/pseuds/lvaeonii
Summary: Izuku Midoriya, a talentless nobody who finds himself stuck in a killing game with 19 other students. Will he be able to survive and uncover the mysterious deaths of his friends?Danganronpa / Killing Game AU(You don't need to know the game in order to read this!)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 15





	1. A Rude Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> hiii I spent the last few months watching gameplays of Danganronpa (cause im poor) and now I'm obsessed. Hope you enjoy, updates might take a while cause planning out the murders and stuff is HARD. Please let me know any mistakes and if you have any suggestions for murders thanks!!

One moment Izuku was standing in front of Yuuei High’s gates, excitement the most prominent emotion he felt from the various feelings that swirled within him. The very prospect of being able to attend Japan’s most prestigious school for the talented was the very cause; it was Izuku’s dream school. And then the next, he found himself groggily waking up from a dreamless nap in an empty classroom. 

Disoriented and perplexed, he rubbed the sleep away from his eyes and hauled himself up from the desk he rested on. He couldn’t help but grimace at the trail of drool he left before glancing around and observing the room. It was odd. The room’s only light source was from a single dropped ceiling, the rest were either shattered or turned off, casting an eerie glow in the room. The windows at the side were covered with wooden boards, it looked hastily placed from the way the boards were positioned and how some of the nails protruded out in weird angles. The classroom itself wasn’t presented in the most ideal way either, books and paper were scattered around and some of the desks and chairs had fallen. In the corner of the room, a bright yellow camera was placed along with a small screen monitor at the opposite corner. They looked out of place… perhaps it was a normal custom to have these in this type of school? Was he even in Yuuei High?

 _… What happened?_ Izuku couldn’t help but wonder. Wasn’t he just about to attend his first day in Yuuei? Wasn’t he just at the gates outside? He certainly didn’t remember how he even got into the classroom. The monitor suddenly buzzed to life, the noise causing the young teen to jump. His gaze quickly landed on the screen, curiosity getting the best of him. 

Once the static cleared, Izuku’s confusement grew tenfold. A plush bear whose fur was divided into two like yin and yang was on screen, who had a small yet cute smile plastered on the white side while the black side had a large sinister grin. The bear sat on a rather large and comfy looking chair and was staring directly into the camera with its beady eyes. This was _definitely_ not what Izuku expected to see. To his horror, it started talking. “Will all the slowpokes please enter the gym? We don’t have all day, you know.” it taunted, his voice was high and shrill in some areas. It creeped Izuku out, was it some kind of robot? With nothing else to do, he decided to go to the gym. He suspected that there would be students there considering the bear’s statement, perhaps he could get some answers.

As he navigated his way down the hallway, he noticed that all the windows were concealed and the area itself was deserted and unkempt. Dread prickled at him, but he forced it down and continued on. He soon found the large gym door and pushed it open, a group of students directed their attention towards him at once. He nervously gulped and scanned for any familiar faces, he immediately regretted that upon catching the eye’s of Bakugou Katsuki, his childhood tormentor.

“...Deku?!” Bakugou called out. Izuku noticed that his friend wore a black bulky equipment belt filled with cartridges of sorts, goggles were placed on the top of his head and his hands were covered with thick black gloves.

“Kacchan..!” Izuku squeaked, he pushed the door closed and hastily walked closer towards Bakugou despite his mind yelling at him to go anywhere else. His virident eyes darted around nervously, noticing that some of the students were watching their interaction with baited interest. “Wh-what’s going on?”

“How the fuck should I know?” Bakugou spat, crossing his arms around him. “One moment it was the first day of highschool and the next I’m sleeping in class. Now I’m surrounded by a bunch of annoying nobodies when I should be exploding some shit right about now.” he seethed, clearly annoyed. He and Bakugou knew each other since diapers, and that meant he got to see his friend develop his talent. He was considered the Ultimate explosive technician, a.k.a he dealt with bombs. Izuku didn’t know how, but Bakugou somehow managed to grab ahold onto a bomb one summer when they were young and was able to change its properties. He remembered when Bakugou eagerly forced Izuku to watch him bomb an abandoned building, it was quite scary. Despite this illegal act, Bakugou was instead recognized for his talent and was soon scouted for Yuuei High. 

“That happened to me too… Do you know anything about that bear that showed up on the monitors?” Izuku asked, his head slightly tilted.

“Does it look like I know? I know as much information as you, dumbass.” the blonde galled, he stilled for a moment before turning towards him. “Wait, why are you even here? Yuuei is for the talented, last time I checked you have none.”

Izuku shrunk under his attention, his words stung but not as much as before. He opened his mouth to reply but stopped, why was he even here? His brain felt blurry as he tried to recall why, before the answer came to him. “I… I got in through the reserve course…?” Why that came out as a question, Izuku didn’t know.

Bakugou eyed him. “... Pathetic.” he scoffed, turning his body away from the other boy.

Izuku fidgeted with the hem of his school uniform, shame drowning him. He opened his mouth to speak but a stranger suddenly arrived by his side, Izuku turned to see a female no younger than him with soft chestnut hair and a friendly face. A white lab coat was draped over her uniform. “Uhm, hey there! My name is Uraraka Ochako, what’s yours?”

At this, Bakugou let out a scoff and walked away, leaving Izuku surprised and confused as to why someone was talking to a guy like him. Especially a female. “O-oh! My name is Midoriya Izuku.” he nervously waved. “Do you know what’s happening?”

“Nope!” Uraraka said, a bit too cheerful in his opinion. “I sorta over heard you guys, and my experience was the same! The others too,” she gestured at the cluster of students from behind.

“That’s really strange… maybe this is all just some big prank?” Izuku pondered, he shook his head before returning back to Uraraka’s gaze. “Anyways, what’s your talent?”

“I’m the Ultimate astrophysicist! If you need any help with physics, or need to understand why you exist and how you were created via space, I’m your girl!” the brunette exclaimed, an excited gleam brightened her doe eyes. Izuku couldn’t help but match her enthusiasm, a big grin overtook his lips.

“Woah! That’s a cool talent, Uraraka. Can you tell me more about it?” Izuku asked, whipping out a rather large notebook and pencil from the inside of his shirt. Uraraka blinked in surprise before bursting into a fit of giggles.

“Where did you even get that— pfft!” she shook her head, a smile still lingering. “Are you sure you want to know more? It might bore you…” 

Izuku vehemently shook his head, the grip on his notebook tightening. “I love learning about talents! I really admire Yuuei and the ultimates. It’s so interesting to see how they utilize their talents and how it incorporates into their overall personality.”

Uraraka tilted her head in amusement. “You really like to analyze, huh? Well, if you say so!” she opened her mouth to begin before another taller stranger appeared by her side. He looked rather intimidating, his jet blue hair styled properly with piercing red eyes directed towards him behind angular glasses. Izuku felt his nervousness dissipate once the stranger briskly chopped his hands down in front of him, it looked out of place and amusing.

“I’m Iida Tenya!” he introduced quite loudly. “I’m the Ultimate runner, but I also enjoy enforcing a safe and respectful environment for this school! I noticed you were new, and I would like your name please. I want to keep everything in check.” he explained. Izuku blinked, slightly overwhelmed and surprised by his talent. He expected someone like him would wear gym related clothes.

“My name is Midoriya Izuku, i-it’s nice to meet you.” 

“Iida!” Uraraka whined. “Why did you have to interrupt us? I was about to tell him the wonders of astrophysics.” 

Iida brought up his hand and readjusted his glasses as he spoke. “I apologize, but I must get to know everyone here if I want to become our future class representative. And plus, you would’ve taken quite a while explaining it to him.” 

Uraraka huffed. “Alright. I’ll just quickly sum it up. Basically astrophysics explains how stars, planets, us, almost everything is made by the use of physics and chemistry. Throughout my life I’ve been coming up with theories and solving questions scientists had yet to figure out, Nasa even has a spot for me once I graduate!” she took out a pencil that hid behind her ear and started to fiddle with it. “But that’s the only thing I’m good at. Math and science I can do to some degree because this subject is related to it, but others like english or art, I can’t do to save my life!” 

Izuku finished jotting down everything she said at the same time she stopped, his mind buzzed with questions and theories. “Regardless, your talent is amazing along with the things you accomplished!” he gushed.

Uraraka’s face blossomed with red. “A-ah, well…” she stuttered.

“Indeed! Uraraka, you should be proud of yourself!” Iida added. “Midoriya, would you like to hear my talent as well?”

Izuku seized the opportunity with a vigorous nod.

“I’ll summarize it as well since there are many students I would like you to meet. As the Ultimate runner, I won every race I’ve participated in ever since I was in diapers. Today, I can run up to 35 mph. On a good day, I can go 40 mph.” his composure faltered for a moment. “Although… my talent does not help my desire to be class representative, or prime minister to be exact.”

Izuku stopped writing. “Wait, you want to become prime minister? But doesn’t becoming a marathon runner make more sense?” 

Iida nodded. “You are correct. It is my talent after all, but I just don’t find it as interesting as the feeling of…” he flailed his hand around, eyes searching for the right word. “Control, or leadership. I like to be someone people can depend on, not just some guy who can run fast.”

“Aw, Iida…! You’re already the most trustworthy guy I know here, I think you can both run and be prime minister in the future. You got my vote!” Uraraka patted his back with a grin, Izuku nodded in agreement.

_Maybe he doesn’t see the use of running, just a sport that can gain him some money. Izuku found himself thinking. Does he feel that it’s a useless talent? Does he feel shackled by it? Or am I just overthinking?_

“Midoriya, what’s your ultimate talent?” Iida then asked. Midoriya returned his notebook back but kept the pencil, his eyes casted down to focus on it.

“Uhm… I actually don’t have one.” he replied.

“He’s from the reserve course _and that’s okay.”_ he heard Uraraka say, her tone emphasising her words.

“O-oh! I see.” Iida stuttered. “Well, regardless, you can still depend on me even if we’re in different classes.”

Izuku glanced back up to see the two smile at him, it was reassuring and brought a warm and light feeling within him. “Thank you. I don’t know why I’m here with you guys, though.”

Uraraka hummed in response. “Yeah, that is strange. But let’s worry about that later, let’s go introduce you to the others!” Before the freckled teen could do anything, she latched onto his arm and dragged him over to the others, Iida on their heels. “Hey guys, I want you to meet our new friend!”

Various heads turned towards them, some displayed shy smiles while others greeted him with a friendly wave. A young man with bright red hair that was oddly slicked up like horns spoke up first. “Hey there, my name is Kirishima Eijiro! I’m the Ultimate bodybuilder. If you ever need help to get into shape, I’m your man!” He wore a black tank top but kept the uniform pants, a black headband was wrapped around on his forehead.

“I’m Kaminari Denki, the Ultimate electrician.” a blonde guy that had an orange safety helmet designed with a black bolt obscure his hair introduced next, he wore protective overalls under his unbuttoned uniform vest.

Another guy who wore similar overalls but had tools hanging from his belt looped an arm around Kaminari with a lazy grin. “My name is Sero Hanta, the Ultimate repairman. I can fix just about everything.”

“I’m Ashido Mina, the Ultimate breakdancer!” a young woman exclaimed, leaning towards Izuku with a mischievous grin. “I can teach you some moves, if you want!”

Izuku meekly shook his head, a smile he hoped to be kind enough on his lips. “N-no, that’s okay. Nice to meet you all.”

“This is Midoriya Izuku, he’s from the reserve course and he has no idea why he’s here.” Uraraka explained as she let go of his arm.

“Yeah, we have no idea why we’re here either. I just wanna go to the dance studio already!” Ashido whined.

“I wanna go to the music room, I’m bored.” another female butted in. She had slick raven hair that was cropped short, large purple headphones were wrapped around her neck, and a large oversized black jacket hung her frame. She noticed Izuku and gave a relaxed smile. “Hey, I’m Jirou Kyouka. I’m the Ultimate musician. I already heard your introduction, so don’t worry about it.”

“Jirou, maybe you should sing right now and I can dance to it. Come on, let’s do it!” Ashido pleaded, shaking her friend by the shoulders.

“No, I think I’m good.”

“Everybody! There will be no singing or dancing of that matter, we must all stay behaved and collected until our teachers come here.” Iida instructed, Ashido simply stuck her tongue at him and continued on pestering Jirou.

“Yeah, everyone. Listen to four-eyes over here, he’s got the right idea!” the familare shrill of a voice suddenly sliced through everyone’s chatter, capturing all their attention towards the stage at the front of the gym. From behind the tall podium popped out the small plush bear Izuku had seen earlier, seemingly out of nowhere. It landed on top of the stand with ease, Izuku briefly wondered if it was a robot. “Now I know what you all are thinking right now; who is this adorably fluffy and cute bear you _bear_ witness?”

Jirou groaned at its pun.

“Well, my name is Monokuma! And I’ll be your headmaster at Yuuei High for the rest of your pathetic days spent here. Isn’t that great?” 

“... This must be a joke.” a young man with a scar covering half of his face muttered impassively.

Iida suddenly raised his hand up high and spoke. “Pardon me, but isn’t Mr. Nedzu supposed to be the headmaster? And where are the rest of the staff and students?”

“Oh, them? Yeah, you can forget about them. They’re all dead anyways.”

Izuku couldn’t help but freeze at that statement.

“That… I’m sorry but I don’t think you should joke about that.” Iida stuttered, nervously pushing his glasses back to his eyes.

The bear tilted its head, expression never faltering from its eerie smile. “Upupupu,” it laughed, rather condescendly. “But I’m afraid it’s not a joke!”

Izuku could feel cold sweat slip through his skin, despite his lack of movement his mind began whirling with thoughts. This had to be a sick type of joke, right? Why would they use such a weird looking robot anyway? It just didn’t make sense.

“For you see,” it continued. “You’re all going to participate in my killing game!” 

Uraraka slightly staggered back. “Wh-what?”

“Oi, do you really think we’d believe some achromatic fuck toy like you? You’re barely 2 feet tall!” Bakugou spat from his corner in the back, irritation evident from the creases that stretched his face.

“Wow, what a pottymouth! But yes, it would be pre-e-e-tty wise to believe in little ol’ me.” Monokuma sang playfully, despite the predicament it just insinuated. 

“What exactly is this killing game…?” a tall woman calmly asked with her hand raised, her black silky hair neatly tied up into a ponytail.

“It’s actually really simple. I give you guys a motive and in return I expect a murder to happen, intentional or not. I’ll give you guys some time to investigate and afterwards we’ll hold a class trial to find the murderer! If the majority votes for the wrong person, everyone except the blackened will die a gruesome but spectacular death!” it exclaimed with such glee, sickening Izuku to the bone. “But if you guys pick the right person, they’ll get an execution while the rest of you live! It’ll continue on like that until two people survive. How fun!”

Silence. Tense, dreadful silence filled the atmosphere. The once friendly and welcoming air dissipated, leaving fear in its wake.

Surprisingly, Izuku spoke up. “What happens if we all chose to not kill?”

“Then you all will live the rest of your insignificant lives here within these walls! Though, I doubt it. With the right motive, someone will eventually snap.” it explained, its tone sickly sweet.

The freckled teen gripped onto his pencil in an attempt to anchor himself. He couldn’t quite believe what was happening, this had to be some cruel twisted joke. What happened to Yuuei and its staff? How could they all possibly die? And why were a bunch of highschoolers placed in such an inhumane game? 

“... This… this game won’t ever happen!” Uraraka began, both of her hands were clenched and trembling, yet she kept a defiant facade and tone that caught the attention of everyone in the room. “We won’t sink low enough to kill! Right guys?”

Various heads nodded, but some were still weary.

“Aww! You really think you guys will overcome this?” the bear cooed. “With what? The power of friendship? Sorry honey, but that type of bullshit doesn’t work in the real world.” it cackled, it spun around in a circle on its heels as its laugh drowned out the other students' protests.

“You want a killing game? I’ll give ya’ a killing game, come right here you pea-sized bitch!” Bakugou exclaimed, a dangerous glint in his eyes as he pushed himself off the wall he leaned on and began striding towards the bear. He pulled out a small grenade from his belt and widely grinned. 

“K-Kacchan! Put that away!” Izuku warned, alarmed _. That boy really needs to learn that violence isn’t always the answer,_ he thought to himself. “You might hurt us as well!”

Bakugou didn’t even falter in his steps. “Relax, stupid Deku. I designed this to have a small detonation radius! Now if this bear will just stand still…”

Monokuma raised its stubby paw up in a scolding manner, unperturbed by the man with the deadly weapon. “Nuh-uh-uh! Any violence towards the headmaster and destruction of property is a violation against the rules.”

“Rules be damned!” Bakugou then bit away the safety pin from the grenade and reeled his arm back before throwing the bomb directly towards the bear with precise precision, he laughed as the grenade hit the bear’s head before exploding. Millions of bits and pieces of the robot and the wooden podium scattered around the room, some even hit Izuku. Bakugou turned his head back towards the group of students, a smirk playing on his lips. “See, Deku? I told you-”

“How RUDE!” a shrill voice cried suddenly from behind the blonde, everyone’s attention immediately whipped towards the stage to see Monokuma, alive and all together. Although this time it sported an angry expression, its paw raised with sharp claws extended. “Weren't you raised to respect your superiors you stupid excuse of a human?!” it fumed.

Bakugou stood still, jaw slack with shock. “... Didn’t I just kill you?”

The bear’s frown flipped into a grin, its beady eyes shined with spite. “I can never be killed, stupid! If I get destroyed, I will always come back. I am untouchable! I am the God of this world!” it proclaimed uproariously, both paws extended with power. 

“Yeah, I don’t know about you guys,” Kamanari started, glancing around the people nearest to him. “But we’re kinda fucked.”

“Wow, really?” Jirou responded, her tone feigned with awe. “I wouldn’t have known! Thanks for your insight!”

“Since I’m feeling quite generous today, I’ll let you off with a warning. Next time won’t be as pretty.” Monokuma threatened, dusting imaginary dust off its fur. “Instead, I’ll give you guys your first motive right now as punishment!” a large white cloth screen then descended down from behind the bear, images of what Izuku presumed to be every student’s families projected on it, including his. Dreadful anxiety prodded his insides.

“Oh, what cute families you all have! Would be a shame to have something terrible happen to them, right?” it began, its tone innocent. “Well too bad, something terrible will happen to them if one of you won’t murder anyone soon! I already prepared lots of slow painful deaths for them, so chop chop!” it gleefully exclaimed.

“N-No! That’s not possible, I don’t believe you!” Sero cried, Kamanari and Kirishima both feverishly nodded in agreement.

The bear placed a paw over its mouth with the tilt of its head. “Oh? Well, I guess it won’t hurt to show you guys some physical evidence that yes, I am in fact able to hurt people.” the screen abruptly paused then changed over to footage of a man, probably in his late twenties, strapped onto a metal bed. He had long blonde hair that sprawled all around, tangled and disheveled, along with a moustache on his upper lip and glasses that were perched on top of his eyes. He was unconscious. 

The man looked really familiar to the freckled teen, he racked his brain for answers until he was brutally hit with the realization. That man was the former ultimate host, one of the staff members of Yuuei High; Yamada Hizashi.

On screen, Yamada stirred awake, he seemed disoriented and uncomfortable. _“Woah… Where the heck am I…?”_ he drowsily asked, he struggled to get up but was confined by the straps on his body and forehead. _“Aizawa, where did you go?”_

There was a faint rustle before Monokuma showed up with a grin on top of the man’s chest, Yamada’s eyes instantly shot wide awake with alarm and recognition. _“Good morning sleepyhead! Yamada Hizashi, was it? Former ultimate host, was known as ‘Present Mic’ back in highschool. What a reputation!”_

Yamada began to struggle, his green eyes darting everywhere frantically. _“Oh hell no! This can’t be happening! What happened to Aizawa? Where’s the rest of my team?”_

“Oh, but it is happening!” Another voice appeared, it was distorted and obviously autotuned beyond the point of recognition. They didn’t appear on screen though, they were behind the camera. _“It’s nice to finally meet you! Too bad we won’t have a lot of time to spend though.”_

The man’s chest started to heave violently, he was hyperventilating. _“No! Don’t do this! I gotta save the kids before-”_

_“Too bad, so sad.”_

The sound of machines whirling filled the air, Monokuma bounced off Yamada before several mechanical hands holding various appliances appeared on screen, hovering above the blonde awaiting for instructions. In the background, country music started to play.

 _“Oh, you cynical bastards! I hate country!”_ Yamada cried. 

_“That’s the point, loudmouth!”_ Monokuma retorted back. One hand held a jar filled with insects of all kinds, it lowered down enough that when Yamada saw it he let out a piercing scream. The hand sprinkled the bugs all around the man, his body writhed with disgust and fear, especially when one beetle crawled its way onto his face. 

_“I heard you recently weren’t feeling so well, Mr. Yamada. How about we take a look inside and see what’s wrong, hm?”_ the voice asked, as if this was all some sick play-pretend game.

_“No, no, please!”_

Another hand was lowered, a scalpel with a blade so sharp was gripped tightly around it. It tore away the fabric that covered his chest as Yamada’s screams got more frantic and louder. The blade then dove down sharply, piercing his soft skin and--

That was when Izuku decided he had enough. He quickly turned his head and squeezed his eyes shut, he brought the palms of his hands up to his ears in an attempt to silence Yamada’s blood curdling screams that intensified whenever the knife sliced more of his skin and organs. But it didn’t work, it was faint but it was _still there._ Izuku’s legs felt weak, his body broke out in cold sweat, fear clawed and scratched at him with no intention of ever stopping. Along with the sounds of screaming and laughter, he faintly heard his own heart thumping erratically. 

This could not be happening. This simply should not be happening at all! He was supposed to be at class, learning and content at the mere prospect of attending his dream school. Instead, he was surrounded by a bunch of potential murderers and forced to watch one of his supposed teachers get gruesomely murdered with the threat that his innocent mother and father were in danger hanging in the air. _This could not be happening._ Despite Izuku’s insistent protests, deep down he knew this was all real. The footage looked too real to be fake, the events that had just happened felt all too real, and the way his classmates trembled with fear had to be real. 

Finally, the screaming stopped. Izuku waited for a few moments before cautiously glancing back up, he instantly regretted it. Forever ingrained in his eyes was the sight of Yamada Hizashi, his corpse covered with disgusting bugs and his chest cut wide open that organs spilled out of it without a care. His once lively eyes were dead and sliced with shards of glass from his broken glasses, blood oozed from every hole visible on his body. 

Izuku felt light headed.

Ashido let out a scream.

The rest stayed silent, some trembled while others looked like they were about to faint. The defiant and loud mouthed Bakugou was now quite and still, shock laced with horror evident on his face. 

Monokuma let out a laugh, satisfied by their reactions. “Ah, such beautiful despair! Also, don’t forget to check your pockets. I placed a handbook with all the rules and instructions in there. Enjoy the rest of your stay here!” and with that, he disappeared to who knows where.

Izuku wanted to scream, but he choked it down. He desperately wished this wasn’t all real.


	2. Pleasant Surprises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku gets to know his classmates and school a bit better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hihihi sorry for long wait I got busy cause of school, hope u enjoy!!

“E-Everyone! We need to calm down!” Iida’s voice rang out through the chaos. It was wobbly and uncertain, but it managed to quiet down Ashido’s sobs and the frantic chatter between the students. Izuku stood still next to Uraraka’s trembling figure, the grip on his pencil was almost strong enough to break it in half. His breaths were short and unbridled, a fog of fear would’ve surely clouded his senses if it weren’t for Iida stepping in to take control.

“Yes… Yes, he is right. We won’t accomplish anything like this.” the young woman with the neat ponytail spoke up as well. Her features were delicate, yet she sported tools and hardware around her body with goggles framing her forehead. “Ah, I should introduce myself. My name is Yaoyorozu Momo, the Ultimate Inventor.”

“Sorry, Ms. Yaoyorozu, but I personally don’t want to be stuck in a room filled with potential murderers!” a rather small boy with odd round hair practically shrieked.

Uraraka suddenly shook her head erratically before glancing at the boy with such determination, a clear contrast from the state she was once in. It impressed Izuku that she was able to recover so fast, although he couldn’t help but notice that her hands trembled slightly. “No! Like I said, nobody is going to kill anybody. We’re not like that! For goodness sake, we’re just highschoolers!” 

“Everyone has the potential to kill, don’t be so naive.” a new voice resounded through the room, it was the young man with the scar on his face. His hair was styled in half, with interesting monochromatic eyes, and an expression that was as cold as ice. Alarmingly, on his back were two dual swords.

Upon getting a better look of the boy, Izuku noted that he looked rather familiar. 

The short boy let out a surprised yelp. “Why do you have swords!? You’re gonna kill us, aren’t you?”

The man shook his head, his frown growing deeper. “Unfortunately, these are bamboo. The school wouldn’t let me bring in my real ones. Even if I did have it, it would be stupid of me to use it because it would be so obvious.” his tone then took a turn, it was dangerous and clipped. “Although, I won’t hesitate to use these on anyone who even remotely tries to touch me.”

“Okay, that’s enough! For all we know, Monokuma could just be lying. That thing wants to play with our minds by using something important to us as a motive.” Iida cutted in, slicing the air with his hand. “We mustn't let it get to us.”

“But-- but you saw what it did with Mr. Yamada!” Ashido ululated with furrowed brows. “That could happen to our families! I -- I really don’t want that!”

Uraraka began rubbing the wailing girl’s back comfortingly. “But there’s also a possibility that they’re just lying. We can’t let them get to us, we need to stay strong as a group.”

“Yes! I propose that we all work together as a team and find a way out of this place.” Iida agreed.

A loud thud resonated in the gym, everyone’s eyes whipped towards the source. Kirishima stood there with a sheepish smile, his arm extended from punching the wall. “As the Ultimate Bodybuilder, I should’ve been able to break any wall. Sorry guys.” he began rubbing his hand, his expression slowly straining with pain.

“I-It’s alright, Kirishima!” Izuku began. “I don’t think those are normal walls anyways, they look to be reinforced with some metallic compact… Like titanium or something.” he theorized, eyes scanning the walls around them.

“We’ll just look for another way out then!” Kaminari chirped up.

“Then let’s all split up and look for a way, while doing so we can get a better idea of this place.” Yaoyorozu suggested, clasping her hands together with determination. “But perhaps we should be in groups of two or more, just to be safe.” almost everyone muttered their agreement, Bakugou simply scoffed.

“Okay everyone, partner up and come check with me afterwards. Let’s all meet up at the cafeteria at lunch.” Iida explained as everyone began diverting into groups of two. Izuku was about to turn towards Uraraka and ask before a hand roughly grabbed onto his shoulder, making the freckled teen lose his balance with a stagger. 

“Oi, nerd.” Bakugou grumbled, clearly not satisfied. Izuku froze for a second before turning to look at him, startled. “You’re the only one I know here, and I _know_ you wouldn’t even hurt a fly. You’re coming with me.” he decided for himself.

“But--” 

The blonde then turned on his heels and went towards the exit of the gym, leaving Izuku feeling conflicted. He really didn’t have a choice, did he? Bakugou was too stubborn of a person and he didn’t want to leave his friend (?) alone in this type of situation. The image of Yamada’s body in such a grotesque manner suddenly flashed in his mind, a horrid feeling of anxiety swelled in his stomach. So he quickly called out to Iida then raced back to Bakugou. He found him impatiently waiting outside of the gym, the blonde glared at him before stuffing his hands into his pocket and started walking down the vacant hallway. Izuku followed from behind, feeling quite awkward and confused. Should he start a conversation? Bakugou would always get annoyed by him simply opening his mouth. But perhaps it would be best to address the situation, considering that there was the threat of death.

“Uhm, K-Kacchan…?” Izuku began then quickly clamped his mouth shut, afraid of the insults Bakugou would yell towards him.

Surprisingly, none of that happened. Instead he simply grunted, “What.” 

The freckled teen blinked. “... Do you really think that Monokuma would really hurt our families? Sorry, I’m just really worried.” he sighed.

Bakugou stayed silent for a while, leaving Izuku with a mousy feeling until he finally responded. “That teddy bear won’t do jackshit. That video was fake, and this whole situation will get resolved soon. Stop worrying too much, it’s annoying.” 

Izuku stared at his former friend’s back, wanting to refute that the video couldn’t possibly be fake. But he decided to drop it, even though he couldn’t quite believe his words. He saw what Bakugou looked like during the video, a clear contradiction to what he was telling Izuku right now. Maybe he was lying to himself, maybe he wanted to believe that everything would be alright. “... Yeah, you’re right. Sorry.”

They continued on, silent as they walked through the rooms and corridors. At one point, Izuku mustered up the courage to walk by the blonde’s side. To his surprise, Bakugou didn’t say or do anything. 

They visited the library, the dorm rooms, cafeteria, and some of the classrooms, sometimes one of them making small comments like, “Wow, this place looks like shit.” or “Kacchan! Look at this cool thing.” 

Soon enough, they came across one of the lab rooms. It was a construction lab, filled with hardware and mechanics for those with similar talents. Bakugou was one of them. The moment he laid eyes on it he rushed inside, not bothering to wait for Izuku. He was like a child in a candy store, although he looked far too scary from a child. He excitedly began tinkering with the machines and rambled about how it worked. Izuku didn’t really mind, he was content with listening and jotting down notes.

“...And this beauty right here,” he picked up a large box that had an electronic screen jumbled with codes and buttons that were unfamiliar to Izuku, a wild grin on his face. “This can deconstru-- ow!” his whole body then suddenly stumbled forward, Izuku instinctively fumbled over to help but the blonde shook him off with irritation. He placed the box down and turned his head back to the person who bumped into him. “Oi! Watch your fucking step, christ! I could’ve dropped this thing.”

The person in question was Kamanari, he held up his hands to surrender with a sheepish smile. “Whoops! Sorry, man. I just got excited once I saw this power drill.” he held it up for Bakugou to see, which he simply sneered at. “You’re Bakugou, right? I’m guessing the Ultimate Terrorist or something.”

Izuku stifled a laugh from behind his hand while Bakugou glared daggers at the poor electrician. “Whaddaya mean Ultimate Terrorist?! I’m the Ultimate Explosive Technician, dunce face!” 

“Oh, hehe, my bad. It’s just that when you threw that grenade at that bear, you looke _d really_ scary--”

“I’ll stuff my grenades up your ass if you don’t stop talking!”

“K-Kacchan…” Izuku spoke up, deciding that it wouldn’t be the greatest idea for Bakugou to start a fight. “I think you can stop now, he gets it.”

“Yeah, fighting at a time like this won’t help.” a new voice stepped in, it was Kirishima. 

“Oi, shitty hair! Spread the word that I’m the _Ultimate Explosive Technician_ , not the Ultimate Terrorist.” Bakugou scowled.

Izuku sighed, hoping that this wouldn’t escalate much further. He decided to step in if Bakugou started to get more violent, for now he walked around the room. Observing everything in place, there were ropes, hammers, wood, even a hydraulic press in this lab. In other circumstances he wouldn’t have thought much of it, but he couldn’t help but feel weary that all these dangerous items were out in the open. 

“Oh! Midoriya Izuku, was it?” a feminine voice called out, Izuku glanced up and saw Yaoyorozu, a gentle smile on her face. Izuku nervously smiled back.

“Ah, yeah it is. You’re Yaoyorozu, the Ultimate Inventor! I guess it’s no surprise to see you here.”

She nodded. “Indeed. I’m very elated that this is one of the labs that are currently available, as it seems that the other floors to this building are sealed off. And that includes the lab rooms within it. Although, this is a very dangerous room.” 

“Yeah, b-but I’m sure nobody will actually participate in the killing game!” Izuku replied, although he still wasn’t quite sure of it.

“Yes. I hope we all become friends instead, I was very excited to attend this school and make new friends. Oh, and don’t worry about telling me your talent, Midoriya. Iida already told me, it doesn’t matter to me whether you have a talent or not.” she warmly stated, although Izuku couldn’t help but dislike the pity that loomed faintly in her eyes. Regardless, he appreciated it.

“Th-thanks, Yaoyorozu! I hope we become great friends too.” Izuku beamed. He then heard the thunderous roar of Bakugou’s screeching, he let out a sigh.

“Oh my, are those two fighting?” she wondered out loud, concern etched her features.

“Sorry about that, Kacchan’s been like that ever since we were young. I’ll get him out of here.” With that, he bid the young woman goodbye and dragged Bakugou out of the room as he yelled profanities to the two other boys. The two continued on as the blonde muttered curses under his breath, they soon found the infirmary. They went inside and looked around, Izuku was thankful that there were first aid tools and medicine still lingering around. As his eyes scanned the cabinet filled with pills, he spotted some bottles that looked out of place. He further examined it and made a dreadful discovery, the infirmary contained poison. There was cyanide, methanol, strychnine, and more.

“Kacchan, look!”

The blonde sauntered over and peered over his shoulder before muttering a swear. “Those bastards really want us to play, huh?”

“Should we tell the others?” Izuku asked, slightly shaking the bottle of strychnine in his hand.

“Nah, they might use it on one of us. We should hide it.” Bakugou then glanced around before grabbing some of the bottles and heading over to one of the shelves at the corner filled with books. He slid them behind the rows of books and gestured for Izuku to do the same, after doing so Bakugou grabbed a small plant pot and placed it there to make it more inconspicuous.

“Oh hey! It’s you guys.” Sero’s voice suddenly greeted, causing Izuku to jump. Bakugou acted quickly and pretended to inspect one of the books on the shelf. Izuku glanced at them and saw that a blonde man who looked to be a foreigner was by his side. “It’s a good thing that there’s an infirmary, right?” 

Bakugou didn’t even bother to respond, simply opting to exit the infirmary with brows furrowed with irritation. Izuku nervously chuckled and followed him out. “Don’t mind him, but yeah I agree.”

“God, these people annoy me so much.” Bakugou vented once Izuku was out of the room, he was leaning on the wall beside the door. “They’re even more annoying than you, can you believe it?”

Izuku shot him an unimpressed look as he gently closed the door shut. “Kacchan, maybe you should try making friends here? We’re supposed to be working all together.”

The blonde scoffed as if it was the dumbest idea he had ever heard. “Hell no. In order to survive in this type of environment, you’re supposed to not trust anybody. You let them in, and they’ll use that to their advantage to strike.” 

“Does this mean you trust me?” Izuku asked, eyes wide.

“No. But you’re the only one I know since childhood, but that doesn’t mean I won’t hesitate to kill you if you attack me.” he threatened with a dangerous smirk, Izuku gulped. “Plus, you’re a big ass wimp. I’ll be able to easily overpower you.”

“Thanks, Kacchan…” Izuku dryly responded before glancing up at one of the digital clocks situated on the wall nearby, it was already close to lunch. “We should probably go to the cafeteria now.”

Bakugou grunted in response and pushed himself off the wall, Izuku followed as he took the lead. Bakugou’s words kept replaying in the greenette’s head. It was sort of a comforting thought that Bakugou trusted him more than anybody in this school, but his threats loomed in the back of his head like a mantra. Sure, Izuku would never betray him, but Bakugou could easily do so. He used to bully Izuku physically back in middle school, what would stop him now? Izuku knew the blonde was smart, he could easily construct a murder that nobody would ever figure out and leave this hellhold. But…

Bakugou wasn’t that type of person, was he?

Sure, he was an asshole but Izuku personally believed Bakugou would never sink that low.

Right?

\---

Upon entering the cafeteria, Izuku noticed the tense atmosphere. Everyone there had smiles and were holding conversations with one another, but it was fake. The type of lie that kept everyone ignorant from the horrible truth. Some didn’t even bother to put up the facade, students like the dual sword guy were sitting alone at a far corner. Izuku suspected Bakugou would do the same, so he stopped him before he could do so.

“Kacchan, do you want to come sit with me, Uraraka, and Iida? I don’t think they’ll mind.” Izuku suggested with a nervous smile.

Bakugou scrunched his nose in disgust, Izuku mentally rolled his eyes at the act. “I'd rather die.” he then turned and went to a secluded corner to eat without another word.

“You’re so dramatic…” Izuku muttered before going over to where Uraraka and Iida sat, they were situated at a large table with a few other people Izuku had yet to meet with. Upon seeing him, Uraraka waved at him with a welcoming smile.

“Midoriya! Come sit over here.” she called out and Izuku complied, he took a seat next to her and smiled at both the girl and Iida before glancing over to the rest of the group. Almost everyone was sitting here except for Bakugou, sword guy, and a few others. “Guys, meet Midoriya Izuku. He’s from the reserve course.”

“Hi.” Izuku shyly greeted.

“Hello. My name is Tsuyu Asui, the Ultimate Herpetologist, you can call me Tsu. I work with reptiles, frogs are my favourite.” a girl with long dark green locks tied up into a neat bun introduced. She wore a lab coat and had large green gloves on both hands, she smiled politely at him.

“I’m Hagakure Toru! The Ultimate Photonic. I work with lights through sciencey stuff! If you ever want some good lighting for a photo, hit me up.” a bubbly girl chirped up. She had short fluffy blonde hair that bounced whenever she moved, on top of her bangs were goggles.

“Bonjour! My name is Aoyama Yuga, the Ultimate Designer! I’m sure you’ve heard of me, oui? My designs are fairly well known, especially in France.” the boy Izuku met earlier at the infirmary greeted next. He had flamboyant blonde hair, his clothes were bright and glamorous and his accent was quite thick. He must’ve been a foreign exchange student, quite unfortunate enough to be stuck in this type of situation.

“Hey, my name is Sato Rikido. I’m the Ultimate Baker.” a large muscular man said, a friendly smile on his face. Izuku was surprised, he would’ve thought of him to be the Ultimate Bodybuilder or something similar. A cute baby blue apron hung around his figure, a chef hat was perched on the top of his head.

“I’m Mineta Minoru,” the small boy from earlier spoke up next, he was sitting on a stack of books on his chair. “The Ultimate Strategist! If you have any friends, specifically girls, who are single and lonely please don’t hesitate to-- ack!” Tsuyu smacked his head before he could finish, Izuku couldn’t help but wince.

“I’m Ojiro Mashirao, the Ultimate Martial Artist. It’s nice to meet you.” a guy with short blonde hair said, a gentle smile on his lips. He wore a white robe with a black sash wrapped around his torso.

“Hehe, Ojiro is so polite.” Ashido commented from her seat next to Jirou.

“It’s nice to meet you all, I hope we can all get along with each other.” Izuku responded with a sweet smile, unbeknownst to them his leg bounced up and down anxiously beneath the table.

“Yo, Midoriya!” Kaminari said, Izuku glanced at him and saw that he was sitting between Kirishima and Sero who ate ravishly. “Where did Bakugou go?”

“Oh, he… Wanted to be alone.” Izuku responded, taking a quick glance at his former tormentor. He sat at a table alone, his back facing the group.

“I guess that’s understandable.” Tsuyu noted. “Some people just have a hard time trusting others.” Yaoyorozu nodded with agreement from her seat beside the herpetologist.

“Yeah. Did you see that sword guy? He’s so scary, what the hell…” Mineta added, stuffing some fries into his mouth. “Do you guys know what his name is?”

Iida spoke up. “His name is Todoroki Shouto, the Ultimate Dual Wielder. He’s the son of the famous Todoroki Enji, the former Ultimate Swordsman. From what I gathered from talking with him, he’s quite a reserved person.” 

Something clicked in Izuku’s brain. “Oh! So that’s why he looked familiar! His father was such a cool guy.”

“And he’s such a hottie!” Hagakure squealed, clasping her hands together with awe. 

“Preach!” Ashido laughed.

Something suddenly poked Izuku’s side, he jolted before quickly glancing at the source. Uraraka had poked him, she let out a giggle at his reaction. “Midoriya, aren’t you going to eat?”

Izuku faltered. Truthfully, after witnessing that horrid video the last thing he’d ever want to do is eat. He just could not get rid of the image of all the bugs crawling around Yamada’s corpse no matter how hard he tried, or the lifeless eyes that had pieces of glass stuck in it. “A-ah, no I don’t really feel hungry right now. I’ll eat later.”

Uraraka eyed him. “Promise? Despite everything you should still take care of yourself.”

Izuku nodded, a warm smile curled his lips. “I promise. Thank you.”

The rest of lunch gradually descended into a somewhat comfortable atmosphere. The killing game and Monokuma’s motive still hung in the air, but it wasn’t as heavy as before once everyone got to know each other better.

\---

After lunch, Izuku decided to head down into the dorm rooms to take a nap. After watching someone die and having to interact with a lot of new people that could possibly kill him, he concluded that a nap was the best way to temporarily escape this difficult situation.

The dorms were located at a different building a few blocks away from the main building, while Izuku walked outside he took note of the large wall that surrounded the campus. The only view he had of the outside world was the sky above him, it was a bright shade of blue with some clouds floating around. His heart ached with longing, he desperately wanted to go back home, back into his mother’s warm embrace. He wanted to see his father again, even though they weren't as close because of his job abroad. 

Izuku sighed, his poor mother must be worrying about his whereabouts. He soon arrived at the front of his dorm room, he said a quick hello to Ojiro who passed by him before entering his room. He quickly locked it before taking a glance around. It was spacious, a large comfy bed was situated in the corner, there was a table with stacks of books, at the top corner of the ceiling near his bed was a yellow monitor identical to the one he first saw in the classroom, and at the back wall was a large window that was draped with black curtains. He padded towards the bed before diving straight into it, he caccooned himself with the blankets and let out a satisfied sigh. He closed his eyes and started to drift away into sleep before a thought came to his mind. He begrudgingly blinked his eyes open before taking out the handbook Monokuma had mysteriously placed in his pocket.

_I never really got to take a look at this, didn’t I?_ He thought to himself, he supposed he was too shocked from the video to even think about it. 

The handbook Monokuma had given to them was a digital device similar to an ipad. At the back, it had a label with the word “MonoPad” written on it. Izuku rolled his eyes at that, that bear really liked to trademark his name. He turned the device on and was greeted with a screen of his student ID along with personal information such as his birthday, height, chest size (what the hell), and his likes and dislikes. His other classmate’s IDs were displayed as well. The school regulations were there too, basic school rules and ones from the killing game. 

_So we’re not allowed to harm Monokuma and Monokuma can’t harm us. It also says we can’t murder three or more people…_

Izuku turned it off and placed it on top of his nightstand, deciding he was too tired for this and drifted to sleep. 

The pounding on his door woke Izuku up from his dreamless slumber. He groggily got off his bed and opened the door without a second thought, a stupid action he soon realized it was. But thankfully it wasn’t someone looking to murder him, instead it was Uraraka and Iida. 

“Wha--?”

“Good afternoon, Midoriya! I hope you had a wonderful nap.” Iida courteously said.

Uraraka chuckled. “Wow, you must be tired. Did all you do this afternoon was sleep?” 

Izuku rubbed the sleep away from his eyes as he answered. “I think so, what time is it?”

“It’s almost time for dinner. We came here to pick you up since you were taking so long.” Iida explained.

“Wait, It’s dinner already?! I went to bed right after lunch…” Izuku startled. Was he _that_ tired?

“Midoriya, you didn’t keep your promise! I bet you haven’t eaten since breakfast.” Uraraka huffed, concern clear in her eyes. She began dragging the freckled teen out of his bedroom. “Come on, this time you gotta eat!”

Truthfully, Izuku still wasn’t hungry.

They soon arrived at the cafeteria and Izuku immediately noticed something new. The table they ate at for lunch had a few more new people sitting there, one of them was Bakugou. He sat next to Kirishima, Kaminari, and Sero. The three of them pestered the clearly agitated Bakugou. 

“Kacchan, I thought you didn’t want to sit here.” Izuku said as he sat on his seat next to Uraraka.

“I don’t. These three stooges just kept annoying me all afternoon, saying they wouldn’t stop until I sat with them. But low and behold, they’re still fucking annoying me…!” the blonde responded through gritted teeth.

“If we’re the three stooges then I call dibs on Moe!” Kaminari snickered, earning a glare from Bakugou.

“Everyone!” Yaoyorozu began loudly, garnering everyone’s attention in the room. “Some of us have decided to make a feast, that means everyone is invited! Please, come take a seat near the large table so we can all be together.” she gestured towards the table Izuku sat at, Uraraka nodded her head enthusiastically.

“What if we don’t want to?” Todoroki asked from his place in the corner, a bored look on his face.

“We’ll make you! This is supposed to be the chance for us to get to know each other and become one big happy family. So stop being emo and come sit here!” Ashido exclaimed, waving her arms around with excitement.

“I’ll pass.” Todoroki simply replied. Ashido and Hagakure both then made their way towards the boy and began begging to join them, some of the other more extroverted students began talking to the other students that secluded themselves in a corner as well. It was a funny, yet a heartwarming sight for Izuku.

“Uraraka, Iida, and Sato. Let’s start preparing shall we?” Yaoyorozu called out. “Does anyone have any special requests?”

“Can I get orange juice?” Jirou asked.

“Some tea for me, s'il vous plaît!” Aoyama added.

“Oh! Can I help too? I’m great at cooking.” Sero asked, practically jumping out of his seat.

“Oi! I don’t trust this dumbass and any of you, someone might poison my food. Lemme join.” Bakugou accused, standing up as well. Although, Izuku suspected that he didn’t want the chance to escape Kirishima and Kaminari’s company to go to waste. Yaoyorozu nodded with glee and the group made their way into the kitchen, leaving the rest of the students to socialize while they waited.

Izuku decided to make conversation with Tsuyu, she looked to be the most welcoming in the group. She talked about her talent while Izuku listened intently, making comments here and there. He learned that she had a wonderful family and two younger siblings back at home that she missed dearly. Aoyama and a guy named Shoji Mezo, who introduced himself as the Ultimate Boxer, joined in the conversation as well. 

“My single mother lives in France all alone, it was a hard decision to move here so I may attend Yuuei but she insisted! She wanted me to live my dream, I’m very grateful for her.” Aoyama said, sadness prominent in his eyes. “But I’ll try my very best to help you guys find a way out! I can’t just leave her like that!”

Shoji nodded. “I feel the same way, I have an uncle who helped me become who I am today. I need to show him how strong I’ve become.”

Soon enough, Yaoyorozu’s group came back with lots of delicious food. Everyone gathered (even Todoroki, giving in because of the girl’s incessant begging) and dug in. Thankfully, Izuku was able to forget the grotesque video and got to enjoy himself. Even Bakugou looked a little less grumpy.

20 minutes into dinner, Aoyama excused himself saying he was too full to continue but had enjoyed the feast. Soon, others began finishing as well an hour later and departed to do their own things. The feast had been a success, leaving everyone feeling a little bit closer to one another.

“That was a great idea, Yaoyorozu. Thank you for the meal.” Izuku complimented as he cleaned his plate, the girl in question beamed at him.

“You’re welcome, Midoriya. I’m glad everyone got to enjoy themselves.” 

The freckled teen left the cafeteria in high spirits, hope blossomed within him. People he once thought of as strangers were now familiar and welcoming to him, maybe there really was a chance that they all could overcome this killing game. A smile made its way onto his face as he walked down the corridors, he wanted to get some fresh air before going back into his dorm room. But as he neared a corner, Aoyama suddenly appeared and bumped into him.

“A-ah! Sorry, Aoyama.” Izuku squeaked out once he recovered from the initial shock of falling to the floor rather harshly. He winced in pain as he stood up and quickly glanced over to the other boy, Izuku faltered as he took in the blonde’s state. He looked anxious, his hair and clothes were oddly disheveled. Considering the type of person he was, Izuku found that to be strange and concerning. “Hey, are you okay?” he extended his hand to help the other up.

Aoyama quickly nodded, contorting his face into fake ease. “O-oui! It’s just a fall, no need to worry!” he latched onto his hand and the greenette hauled him up, he couldn’t help but notice that his hands were sticky with sweat. 

“U-uhm, not just that… You seem kinda troubled? Do you need any--”

“I’m fine, Midoriya!” he snapped, Izuku quickly shut his mouth with a surprised flinch. “Please stop bothering me, I’m quite busy right now.”

Izuku felt a pang of hurt strike him, he was being annoying, wasn’t he? “O-oh… Sorry, I’ll just...” 

Aoyama left without another word, rounding the corner of the hallway and disappearing. Izuku stayed in that position for a few moments, contemplating his behaviour and Aoyama’s. Izuku couldn’t help but feel shameful for being too nosey, but certainly it should be justified considering the type of situation they were in, right? He sighed in defeat.

“Midoriya? What are you doing?” Uraraka’s voice snapped Izuku from his thoughts, he turned and saw her with Iida looking at him with confusement. 

Izuku scratched the back of his neck with a small smile. “Ah, sorry I was just thinking about something. Anyway, where are you guys going?”

“We wanted to take a walk outside, would you like to join us?” Iida asked.

“Sure, if you don’t mind.”

\---

Yamada’s lifeless eyes stared blankly at Izuku, the teen in question couldn’t move. He was stuck, strapped onto a similar bed Yamada had been tortured in. Beads of sweat slipped down his skin as he watched Monokuma press some buttons from behind a panel, multiple mechanical hands swept down towards him. All held weapons, spiking Izuku’s anxiety up even more. The distorted voice began talking, but it was all a jumbled blur as the hands came closer towards his body. A hand that held a knife was inches away from his eyes, Izuku struggled and a scream escaped his lips. But it wouldn’t stop, it wouldn’t go away. It kept inching closer, and _closer--_

“Rise and shine, ursine! It is now 7 am. Today’s going to be a great day, I just know it!” Monokuma’s voice jolted Izuku awake from his slumber, his eyes fluttered open as his heart thrummed loudly in his ears. He wiped away the sweat that had formed on his forehead as he rapidly blinked his eyes, the fear from his nightmare still faintly lingered within him. “Go ahead and eat some breakfast, you’ll need to have a full stomach in order to commit a murder. Remember, your loved ones are in danger unless you participate in the killing game!” the bear continued, rather cheerful to Izuku’s disgust.

After taking a moment to calm his heart, he got out of bed and began getting ready for the day. He took a quick hot scalding shower, dressed up, and managed to get to the cafeteria in the span of twenty minutes. Some students were already there, eating and talking with one another. Izuku decided to take some pancakes and eat at the usual table, it was peaceful.

Afterwards, Izuku would usually be at school studying by then. Despite being in a school, there were no teachers and Izuku doubted Monokuma would want to teach them anything outside of killing. So Izuku was left with a lot of free time. 

“Hey Midoriya, wanna come to the library with me? I wanna see if there’s any books on frogs.” Tsuyu had come up to him and asked, one gloved finger was pressed onto her lips as she patiently waited for his answer. With nothing better to do Izuku agreed and followed her to the library while making some pleasant conversation. 

“I hope my frogs at home are okay, I’m not sure if my parents can handle them…” Tsuyu thought aloud as they neared the library door, Izuku pushed it open but kept his eyes on his friend.

“Have you taught them anything about it?” he asked, Tsuyu opened her mouth to reply but paused midway. Instead, her eyes shifted past towards Izuku, her already large eyes widening with shock. Izuku sent her a questioning look before turning his head to the sight.

Izuku’s world stilled.

His mind went blank, all the thoughts that endlessly ran through his head had suddenly disappeared. 

There, in the middle of the library was Aoyama’s body, suspended by a rope. Eyes staring right at them devoid of life.

Horrible realization slowly prickled his skin, breaking down the illusion of hope he built with a stagger and a scream.


End file.
